...to turn off a car that has been idling outside my window for over an hour?

[PrincessBuggerPants]

Because I did earlier, and my husband is shocked.

Neighbour left his cab idling, with the hood popped up for well over an hour, maybe two, outside my house. Seeing the hood popped up I assumed some problems with it, so ignored it and felt a bit sorry for him tbh.

Well over an hour later he is nowhere to be seen and the noise is really starting to grate as it is right outside the window to the room I am trying to work from. And it smells funny. I go out to have a look for him and can't see him in the street. I realise I can just turn it off by turning the key, so I did.

I go back inside the house. He appears 30 seconds later, looks miffed, pops hood down. Disappears again.

Reappears 10 minutes later and drives it round the corner. It is still sat there, turned off with the hood down.

WIBU?

No. Surprised you managed for so long

That's ballsy and hilarious! Someone could have got in it and drove off just as easily, silly man.

YANBU. I cannot stand people leaving their cars running for no reason and if he had one, he should have been with it.

I assume you didn’t knock on his door, which I’d have personally instead of turning off the engine. I doubt I’d have been ballsy enough to do it if I had no luck finding him at home; but I suppose I may have done if it was really pissing me off.

Idling a car is irresponsible both for the noise and environment.

You should have got in and parked it round the corner. Leaving a car idling is illegal so he'd have no leg to stand on if he called the police!

It's actually illegal to leave an engine running unattended on a public highway...

Good for you ! it annoys me when people do that even for just a relatively short time ,
I'd like to think I would of stuck a spur up his exhaust , but in reality I wouldn't have the balls for it

Just to flag a legal triviality. We are actually on a private road, so not entirely sure the police would have been relevant.

PLEASE come and sort out the bus that idles outside my window for several minutes at a time, three times an hour between 5am and middnight. One night I'm going to go out there and kill a driver, yes I have contacted the council, TFL and the bus company they all pass the buck, I'm writting to the MP and the CEO of Stagecoach next.

@Bobbiepin

You should have got in and parked it round the corner. Leaving a car idling is illegal so he'd have no leg to stand on if he called the police!

Stealing a car is way more serious than idling

Just to flag a legal triviality. We are actually on a private road, so not entirely sure the police would have been relevant. Yes I think you are right there, I believe the law only applies to public roads so he wasn’t doing anything illegal.

I would have thought environmental issues are more important than legal ones

Well done!

Bet he was trying to charge battery. RAC man advised me to do this. I didn’t, but some might.

I had to get out of bed and go out onto the street in my nightgown because some guy was sitting outside in with his engine running for over 40 minutes at about 2 in the morning - I went out and told him he was keeping me awake and he just turned it off, so there didn't even seem to be any reason for him to be sitting there with it on.

I'd have been tempted to turn it off and throw the keys very, very far away! YANBU OP!

Probably charging his battery...

Young couple next door and the boy does this its soooooo annoying. Why do they do it?! YANBU OP.

We have a guy a few doors up who warms up his engine every morning at 4.30.

I want to kill him

So he was charging the battery!

I did wonder. He should have told me though if he was going to leave it on outside my window for hours. Or at least left a note.

Bet you’re the busy body in the neighborhood aren’t you OP? You know, the one that gets involved in everybody’s business.

It’s ridiculous that a car with its engine running bothered you so much. I suggest a hobby :)

If you're charging a battery 20 minutes is long enough.
After that you're just wasting petrol.

I was told it takes fifteen mins just to cancel out the impact of turning on the ignition and firing it up. Only then do you get incremental increases

@Ribrabrob

Bet you’re the busy body in the neighborhood aren’t you OP? You know, the one that gets involved in everybody’s business.

It’s ridiculous that a car with its engine running bothered you so much. I suggest a hobby :)

Seriously? Because I’m a good neighbour I keep the volume down on my tv/music. A car passing in the street, or idling outside, means I can’t hear it properly. On top of that I’d imagine the fumes are annoying.

Bet you’re the selfish person in your neighbourhood aren’t you @Ribrabrob? You know, the one everybody dislikes, but you don’t know because you don’t have enough self awareness..